CatsIllustrated.com's Newsstand has plenty of baseball reading with Kentucky landing a regional for the first time since 2006. New rankings are out; find out which other programs landed regionals.
That, plus football recruiting, a podcast on Fox vs Ball for the Lakers pick and more.
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BASEBALL GETS REGIONAL
"As expected, Kentucky baseball will host an NCAA regional tournament at Cliff Hagan Stadium this weekend. It’s the first time the Wildcats have hosted a regional since 2006.
UK (39-20) will find out on Monday at noon which teams will come to Lexington for the regional. The Wildcats will also know whether they will be given one of the eight national seeds, which would guarantee a super regional at Cliff Hagan Stadium if UK wins the regional tournament."
LINK: UK baseball to host regional for first time since 2006
16 REGIONAL SITES PICKED
"Each regional field features four teams, playing in a double-elimination format. One of the regionals will start Thursday, June 1 and will run through either Sunday, June 4 or Monday, June 5, while the rest of the 15 regionals are scheduled to be conducted from Friday, June 2 to Monday, June 5 (if necessary).
Two institutions are hosting for the 20th time or more, as Florida State leads the list of schools with 34 and LSU with 25. Stanford is hosting for the 16th time, while Clemson and Florida are hosting for the 15th time since the NCAA went to the regional format in 1975."
LINK: 16 regional sites selected for 2017 NCAA Division I Baseball Championship
BASEBALL AMERICA TOP 25
Kentucky lands at No. 10 in Baseball America's new Top 25, released yesterday.
"The Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference lead all conferences with six teams in the rankings. The Big 12 and Pac-12 Conference follow with three teams each.
The staff of Baseball America determines the Top 25 rankings. Records indicated are through May 28 and do not include ties."
ANOTHER FLORIDA WR?
"Kentucky offered (Jeshaun) Jones early this year. At the time, Jones told CatsIllustrated.com, "Coach (Darin) Hinshaw is my recruiter. I don't know any commits or players. I was surprised by the offer because I haven't really dealt with them directly but have received a lot of mail. I'm planning to get up for a visit this spring or summer. I can't wait to see the campus and facilities."
It's safe to say the relationship has progressed and it's now likely that Jones visits this summer."
VALENTINE'S TOP SEVEN
"On February 28th, Kentucky became the first school to offer Valentine. Over the ensuing two weeks he added about 10 offers altogether.
Valentine has offers from a number of schools that did not make his apparent cut, including Oregon State, Oregon and Tennessee, among others.
Valentine rushed for 680 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior. He played only very sparingly as a sophomore."
PRESEASON HONORS FOR UK FOOTBALL
"An important note on the all-conference teams: These are based on how players will perform in 2017. Career statistics and awards matter in the evaluation, but choosing players for the 2017 all-conference team is largely based on predicting and projecting the best for the upcoming year."
(Note: Only Alabama, Auburn, Florida and Georgia land more preseason All-SEC players, counting Athlon's four teams, than Kentucky).
PODCAST: FOX VS BALL
"The NBA Draft is right around the corner and the Los Angeles Lakers have been blessed with the second overall pick. In the latest episode of the LN Podcast, host Trevor Lane and guests Serena Winters and Hannah Kulik debate whether Lonzo Ball or De’Aaron Fox would be a better selection for L.A. Which one fits better with D’Angelo Russell in the backcourt of the future?"
